Proteases perform a variety of important functions in human physiology. Increasingly diseases are being identified where proteases are critical for the pathology of a particular disease. For these key proteases designing or screening for selective antagonists or agonists can lead to the development of new drugs. The serine proteases are a major family of proteases for which a large number are known. These have been reviewed by Rawlings & Barrett, (Methods Enzymol 244: 19-61, 1994). An example of the serine proteases is the mouse neuropsin (Chen et al. J Neurosci 15 (7 Pt 2): 5088-5097 1995).
There remains a need for identification and characterization of further members of the serine protease family which can play a role in preventing, ameliorating or correcting dysfunctions or diseases, including, but not limited to, pulmonary emphysema, arthritis, multiple sclerosis, periodontal disease, cystic fibrosis, respiratory disease, thrombosis, cancer, cachexia, angina, glaucoma, inflamatory disorders, osteoporosis, cardiovascular disorders such as hypertension, atherosclerotic disorders such as cardiac infarction, and stroke, asthma, psoriasis, chronic neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and Huntington's, demyelinating diseases, AIDS immune deficiency, disorders of photoreceptor degeneration, and lens cataract formation, organ transplant rejection, cataracts, restenosis, muscular dystrophy, renal failure, cerebral vasospasm, pancreatitis, and diabetic nephropathy.